Moses answered him: because the people come to me to seek God's will. Moses' explanation is genuine: the people are not just bringing petty disputes but seeking God's will, and Moses is the one through whom God's will is mediated. The explanation reveals Moses' understanding of his role as more than an administrator: he is a mediator of the divine will. This is correct as far as it goes — there are decisions only Moses can make. But Jethro's wisdom will be to distinguish between those decisions and the ones that can be made by capable representatives. John 21:15–17 records Jesus telling Peter to feed his sheep — the pastoral role has dimensions that cannot be delegated and dimensions that must be. Moses is about to learn where the line falls.

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